Inside The Pinstripes

'Widespread Belief' Unexpected Team Will Make Bighest Bid For Juan Soto, Per Insider

A new MLB team is now thought to be bringing the biggest bid to former Yankees slugger Juan Soto in free agency.

Grant Young

Aug 4, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Juan Soto (22) double during the eighth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Aug 4, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Juan Soto (22) double during the eighth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
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The ongoing Juan Soto sweepstakes has been rather quiet for the past week or so. While we know that most teams thought to be in play to acquire Soto (including the New York Yankees) have already sent in offers, a decision hasn't been made (or at least made public) by Soto and his team.

However, a December 2 article from SNY's MLB insider Andy Martino provided a potential end date to this ongoing saga, writing, "There has been a widespread expectation that the bidding would pick up this week and resolve by or at the Winter Meetings next week. That expectation remains."

Martino also mentioned that one of the Yankees' biggest rivals is expected to provide him with the highest offer.

"It’s no secret that the Yanks and Mets are 'all in' on Soto, as one league source reiterates, and that there is a widespread belief among bidders that Toronto will come in with the highest offer," Martino wrote.

"There is also widespread skepticism that Soto would go to the Blue Jays — but a source pushed back on that, saying that if a team is involved in the final bidding, Soto is willing to play there," he continued. "Team Soto has no need to inflate the perception of his market by adding teams that aren’t legitimately in it."

Given that much of the offseason chatter regarding Soto is that the Mets have the deepest pockets and will therefore come with the highest offer, it's surprising to hear that many now believe the Blue Jays will bring the biggest bid.

All Yankees fans can do now is wait and see whether their team's offer is enough to entice Soto to return.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers the New York Yankees, the New York Mets, and Women’s Basketball for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco, where he also played Division 1 baseball for five years. He believes Mark Teixeira should have been a first ballot MLB Hall of Fame inductee.

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